sisting of the Secretary of State of the United States as president and the diplomatic representatives of all of the Governments of Republics forming the conference accredited to the Government of the United States of America.

The resolutions provide that there shall be a director general of the said union appointed by the governing board. Among other duties the director general is charged with the duty of preparing a budget of the estimated expenses of the union and of apportioning the said expenses to the various signatory Governments who bind themselves by the resolutions to pay into the treasury of the union their respective assessments.

The Pan American Union has by resolution authorized the director general to take charge of the collection and disbursement of the funds of the union in accordance with this budget and to sign all receipts and vouchers. The regulations provide further that the quotas of other Governments—

"shall be paid for safe keeping into the Treasury of the United States to be drawn upon with the quota of the United States by requisition of the chairman of the governing board, through the accountant's office of the Pan American Union, for the purpose of meeting the expenses of the union and of carrying out the orders of said governing board."

By the statute and this regulation the United States has been made the custodian of these funds of the Pan American Union, which are to be advanced to the duly accredited disbursing officer of the union and accounted for to the United States as custodian. It does not follow, however, that the disbursements of the union must be subject to restrictive laws and regulations governing disbursements of the departments and establishments of the United States Government.

The Pan American Union is the administrative arm of an international conference of which the United States is a contributing member only, having no more control over expenditures than its representation on the governing board of the union gives to it.

The sums contributed and appropriated by the United States become moneys of the union in the same manner and to the same extent as the contributions of other Governments. Formerly the appropriations made by Congress differed from the present appropriation in that they, together with the moneys received from other countries, were withdrawn from the United States Treasury on requisition of the Secretary of State of the United States and were available only for the purpose of meeting the expenses of the union, while like funds are now withdrawn on requisition of the chairman of the governing board of the union and are also available for carrying out the orders of said governing board.

Correspondence accompanying the auditor's submission shows that this change was requested by the director general of the union for the purpose of establishing the international character of the union and giving the governing board unrestricted control of these funds. It is effective for these purposes to the extent that it places the funds beyond the operation of general restrictive statutes relating to the public service and the expenditure of public moneys of the United States.

The act of 1906 relating to payments of salary for the 31st day of any month applies only to the salary of "any person in the service of the United States." It does not apply to persons in the service of the Pan American Union, whose compensation is left to be regulated by the union.

The act of 1898 relating to the purchase of law books, books of reference, and periodicals applies to such purchase for the use of executive departments and establishments of the United States at the seat of government and does not apply to such purchase for the Pan American Union.

The statutes relating to printing and binding are also exclusively applicable to the departments and establishments of the United States Government, except that specific provision for printing of the union has been made in the appropriation for public printing for the United States (38 Stat., 673). This provision is apparently intended to cover the expense of the copies of the Monthly Bulletin which the Public Printer is authorized to print for the union. The union funds are available for any printing other than this which the governing board may order.

Section 1765, Revised Statutes, applies only to officers or persons whose salary, pay, or emoluments are fixed by law or regulation of the United States. It does not apply to persons whose compensation is at the discretion of the governing board of the Pan American Union.

The decision of the Comptroller of the Treasury cited in support of the suspension of other items does not apply to expenditures for like items made from the funds of the Pan American Union on the order of the governing board of the union.

As thus modified the auditor's decision is approved.

WARRANTS FOR ACCOUNTING ENTRIES.

The issuing of warrants is authorized to make accounting entries balancing the covering into the Treasury of moneys which were in fact held and checked against under other accounts.

Comptroller Downey to the Secretary of the Treasury, June 7, 1915:

I have your letter of April 27, 1915, forwarding two settlement certificates of the Auditor for the State and Other Departments, and

inquiring whether they may be paid under authority of the appropriation provided by section 3689 of the Revised Statutes, for "Refunding moneys erroneously received and covered before the payment of legal and just charges against the same," it appearing that the moneys involved in the errors which the certificates purpose to correct were covered as miscellaneous receipts into the general fund of the Treasury.

Certificate No. 9955, dated April 24, 1915, finds the sum of $4 due Cornelius O'Keefe, collector of customs, district of Arizona, for "Special deposits, Treasury Department," erroneously deposited as "Miscellaneous receipts-Head tax," and directs a warrant to be drawn chargeable to the appropriation section 3689, supra, and payable to the Treasurer for deposit to the official credit of the collector in account "Special deposits, Treasury Department." The certificate further directs that the collector be charged with the amount of the warrant in his account under the Department of Labor.

The error sought to be corrected arose through the collector understanding that an item "Special deposit account, seizures, $4," reported to the Treasurer on the transcript of the First National Bank of Nogales, Ariz., represented head tax. At his request the Treasurer changed the item in the depositary account from "Special deposit account, seizures" (Treasury Department) to "Special deposit account, head tax" (Department of Labor), and the collector drew his check on the latter account in December, 1913, for the Treasurer to cover the amount into the Treasury as head tax. The collector had previously, however, October 29, 1912, drawn his check on the bank, in the Treasury account, for the $4 to make a refundment to one Lee Hall.

As a consequence the Labor account shows deposits of money not collected under it and a balance of $4 (certificate 6171, of Apr. 9, 1914) due the collector, while the Treasury (Customs) account shows there is no balance, but that there are outstanding checks, and in the Treasurer's office the collector's balance to meet them is $4 short. (See Treasurer's letter of Apr. 16, 1915, to the Secretary.)

The other certificate in question is No. 27500, of April 20, 1915, finding due the American National Bank, of Louisville, Ky., $224.73 for moneys covered into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts and charged to the bank's depositary account. A warrant is directed to be drawn under the appropriation section 3689, supra, in favor of the Treasurer, to be credited by him to the depositary account of the bank.

In this instance the error sought to be corrected arose in connection with the deposits made in the bank by E. H. James, United States marshal for the western district of Kentucky.

The bank issued certificates of deposit on a form used for the deposit of miscellaneous receipts to the credit of the Treasurer, but did not credit them in the Treasurer's account. After consultation between the Treasurer and auditor it was determined the certificates represented "Miscellaneous receipts-fees and costs," and the bank by direction of the Treasurer so reported them on its daily transcript, but did not take them out of the marshal's account.

On the basis of the certificates of deposit the amounts represented ($224.73) were covered into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts, but the bank's account and the Treasurer's account not agreeing it was learned that the bank had dropped the amount from the Treasurer's transcript, and that the amount had been put in the bank originally to the credit of the marshal, the certificates of deposit representing fees and costs which the marshal had collected for the service of process and which the act of May 28, 1896 (sec. 6, 29 Stat., 179), required him to pay to the clerk of the court having jurisdiction, the clerk to account therefor to the Treasury.

The bank had the deposits in the marshal's account and charged against it his checks in favor of the clerks of court, but misled the Treasurer by issuing the wrong form of certificate of deposit.

The money thus appears twice in the Treasury, once through the Treasurer's action upon the certificates of deposit and again through the deposits in the accounts of the clerks of court.

The amount was received only once and can be covered into the Treasury only once, and it is to balance the error under which it appears there twice that the present settlement is made.

Such objection as there may be to the settlements is in what seems to be a drawing of moneys from the general fund in the Treasury under a doubtful application of section 3689.

I think the facts show, however, that there was no real covering-in. The banks had properly listed the moneys and the officers who made the deposits drew upon them accordingly. The Treasurer's action was a covering-in in form only. And likewise the settlements in bringing matters into agreement involve no real drawing of money from the Treasury, although there is the form of doing so.

In the procedure of what is called drawing moneys from the Treasury, an appropriation warrant is used to originate the accounting entries necessary to be made. It is founded on the requirement of the Constitution (art. 1, sec. 9, par. 7) that "no money shall be drawn from the Treasury but in consequence of appropriations made by law," and thus no appropriation warrant issues unless an appropriation act in connection therewith is indicated.

This is the reason for noting section 3689 as the appropriation act under the present circumstances. It is the nearest to statutory au

thority therefor, although perhaps not so literally. But much of what is here involved is matter of form in making entries. The procedure is such that entries have come to be looked upon as needing a warrant no matter what the circumstances, and the warrant as needing an appropriation act.

I believe the constitutional provision has no such legal application here as to preclude issuing the warrants in accordance with the certificates, and the rest may be looked upon as merely matter of form.

DESIGNATION BY ENLISTED MAN OF ARMY OF BENEFICIARY TO RECEIVE SIX MONTHS' PAY GRATUITY.

A designation made and filed continues valid, unless revoked, so long as the soldier remains upon the active list.

A will is not a designation within the meaning of the act providing the six months' pay gratuity, as that gratuity is not a debt or money due him and can not become a part of his estate.

Comptroller Downey to the Secretary of War, June 7, 1915:

By your reference of the 11th ultimo of a letter from the depot quartermaster dated May 5, 1915, you request my decision in relation to the six months' pay gratuity in the case of the late Thomas E. Ray, who at the time of his death was serving as private in Second Company, United States Disciplinary Barracks Guard.

The facts appearing are that Ray made a designation on December 18, 1908, on the form prescribed by the department making Miss Bowley Hensley, "friend,” of Alleghany, N. C., the beneficiary of the six months' pay. He was discharged and reenlisted January 3, 1911, and on the same day he designated as his beneficiary Miss Bowley (or Bormley) Hensley, "friend," of Carmen, N. C.

Shortly after the date of this designation Ray married Susie Hensley at Little Rock, Ark., on February 17, 1911. His wife survives him and makes claim for the gratuity. No children resulted from the marriage.

No designation was made by Ray after that of January 3, 1911. He left a will, which was executed August 13, 1913, by which, after directing the payments of his debts and making certain trifling legacies, he gave and bequeathed—

"to my wife, Susie Ray, and Mrs. Bowley Shelton all the balance of my estate, both personal and real, and all debts or money that is due me from any source, to be equally divided between them, share and share alike."

You ask my decision of the question as presented by the Judge Advocate General in paragraph 1 of third indorsement, as follows: "1. This is a request of the depot quartermaster, Washington, D. C., for the decision of the Comptroller of the Treasury as to whom